...For IN and OUT Beauty...

Hi Beauties!
Long time no post! Hope everything is well with you guys. I've been kind of depressed and couldn't eat, sleep and post due to my home buying nightmare. It's not finished still and I don't know what to think at this moment.
The property I'm buying is 1.5 miles away from the beach and it's a townhouse style condo, I can't possibly afford a house near ocean. So, one of the homeowners (not the unit I'm buying) did some remodeling without the condo Association approval and the association is suing him. BECAUSE of this Bank Of America is refusing to give me a loan. Everything from my side was perfect and because of someone else's mistake I can't get a loan??? It is so hard to comprehend but I guess banks are getting super strict, so strict that it even doesn't make any sense!
So, if you're thinking to buy a condo, make sure to find out if there's any lawsuits as banks get nervous about it.

On the good note, I've finished with my 20 Pan Project! It benefited me in many ways:

• Cleared my clutter making space for new items
• Encouraged me to use up the products. I used to go to bed without applying body lotion or hand cream while I've had dozen products laying around.
  
• Saved me $500-$800 at least. After discovering Youtube and Beauty Blogs my spending on beauty products and make ups was getting out of control. I haven't bought anything for 2 months
• No more uncontrollable urge to shop

Product #16
Olay Age Defying In-Shower Body Lotion

It saves time, moisturizes well, gives nice golden shimmer and easy to use. Just smooth over and rinse in shower.
Cons: The scent is very strong and leaves your shower slippery.

Product #17
Aussie 3 min Miracle Hair Mask.

So affordable at $3.99 performs as well as expensive hair treatments. Smart packaging, just squeeze needed amount, no caps no mess. Leaves my hair noticeably smoother and manageable with less frizz. Not a big fan of it's scent.

Product #18

Clinique Even Better Skin Tone Corrector $39.50

It claims to erase discoloration and dark spots. Since I'm exposed to sun everyday of the year I have tons of sun damages. Unfortunately, I didn't see any change with this product. Needs 4-5 pumps to cover my face, so you run out of it quickly.

Product #19
Shiseido Hydro-Nourishing Softener

I just can't live without it. Saturated in cotton pad it cleans out left over dirt and prepares my skin for next steps of skincare regime.

Product #20
Philosophy Microdelivery Exfoliating Wash

Great in the morning when you don't need a cleanser for removing your make up. Removes overnight oil and dirt and micro beads polishes your skin preparing it for perfect make up. I did a detailed review HERE.

This project was easier than I expected! Yay!

Thanks Beauties for reading!
Stay Beautiful!
xoxo

Hi, Beauties!
I used to be a girl who wouldn't gain an ounce no matter how much I ate.....looong time ago....
Three years ago I've turned to a gal who has to work out constantly to maintain the weight.
Usually I walk (won't lie by saying that I run) 5 days a week up the Mt. Hollywood and do muscle toning exercises in the evening. All this hard work just maintained my weight at 123 lbs. If I stop walking my weight would easily go up to 129 lbs in a week.
But now I'm 117 lbs and maintaining for a month. It's a Miracle! WHY? Cuz I haven't even walked nor worked out last month due to the house hunting!
My diet is in disorder due to the stress and I'm even eating more.

Only GOOD thing I did for myself last month was: I replaced coffee with Green Tea.
I read somewhere that green tea makes the waist tiny and I was sold. I mean, we all heard so many good things about green tea before but idea about tiny waist sounded way more appealing and encouraging!
So now I'm a green tea addict and my favorite is Jasmine Green Tea. I drink 4-5 cups a day. I've added a cup of Black Tea a day after hearing that it prevents breast cancer.
The green tea is really helping with my waist by burning my ugly tummy fat! :)
I'm positive that my new addiction played an important role in my weight loss. So ladies, give it a try. You have nothing to lose (other than inches from your waist ) but have so much to gain (health and beauty wise)!

Now on to my 20 Pan Project Update! Loving this project! It made me save so much money. I used to spend $150-$400 a month on beauty products and I haven't spent a penny since I've started this project in June.

Product #15
Victoria's Secret Beauty Rush Body Glimmer Swirl Cream in Honey Do

I loved its realistic honey dew scent. Like the subtle glimmer (not shimmer) of it on my arms and legs.

5 More products to go! It was easier than I expected!

Thanks Beauties for reading!
Stay Beautiful!
xoxo

Hi Beauties,
I hope you're doing fabulous!
I've found 3 white hairs today and freaking out! hahaha I know it's because of all the stress of home buying. Ladies, be prepared and learn from some of my mistakes! :)
Last Wednesday was my home inspection day and I've never expected anything bad. However, my inspector guy has detected moisture issues, like possible water leak, cuz his moisture meter showed way more than normal level of moisture in baseboards (Standard is 6% of moisture, acceptable maximum moisture 12%, but the measurement at my home was 16-18% ) He's also discovered possible mold growth in couple places. (again because of the moisture)
Lessons I've learned so far:
1) Don't hesitate to pay for house inspection! It might be the best money you've ever spent! ($250-$500)
2) Interview many many again many Realtors and choose the best one who'd work for your best interest! WHY?
The inspector guy recommended more invasive inspection that only water specialists can do to determine the source of the moisture issues. Ok! So who pays for that? I've paid for my general inspection and I wanted to request the seller to pay for more invasive inspection but my realtor who supposed to work for my best interest said that I have to pay for it. I said I don't want to pay for it. Good thing that the sellers agent was present at the inspection.
You won't believe what my agent said! I quote, she said, "Maybe we'll leave the place with open windows for couple days so the moisture level will go down and so the seller won't have to pay for the extra inspection"
At that moment I had to put her on her place. I had to tell her that she's not the sellers agent and it's not her obligation to look after the sellers best interest but the buyers best interest. My best interest was to learn the source of the problem and fix it so it wouldn't happen again. So I had to talk directly to the sellers agent to request the seller to pay for more invasive inspection and pay for correction of the problems. Guess what? The seller agreed to pay for extensive inspection and correct all the problems! However the sellers agent wanted to convince me that it was normal because the property was near the beach but my inspector said it wouldn't justify the moisture level.
Before that my realtor kind of argued with me saying and I quote, " Well, usually sellers say NO!"
I just said to her "Let's see what the seller says!"
So the lesson is: NOBODY NOBODY NOBODY will fully work for your best interest other THAN YOU!!! You're the ONLY ONE who'll really protect yourself!
After that, my agent said: "OK, now I realize that it's possible!" I just wanted to pull all my hair off because she said that she has 20 years of experience yet she's just learning about this kind of negotiation??? So ladies, be VERY VERY CAREFUL who you choose for your agent!
It was evident that initially they saw me as a young Asian girl who is so innocent and sweet but NOW they all know that I can kick their asses and they can't mess with me! Business is a business! Home buying is not an exception! (And I have to mention that I'm not even disclosing even more embarrassing facts about them!)
So ladies, be tough and stand your ground! Do your home works and researches so you can kick some incompetent asses in the future, cuz there're plenty of them! I thought I'd never go wrong with Century 21 but I was wrong! I guess I've stuck with the bad apple! Hahaha!

Hi Beauties,
It's been a week since my last post. Buying a home is one of the biggest events of ones life. Therefore it's exciting, challenging, upsetting, rewarding, stressful, blissful, confusing, educational and beyond....
So far escrow is going smooth. We've ordered appraisal and scheduled the inspection for Tuesday. But one thing is bugging me.... Another property I really really liked became available and here I am in the middle of the escrow wanting different house. I never thought that I would be in this kind of situation as I thought I was a very decisive person. Now I just can't decide, haha
Finally, yesterday I had a chance to put a sheet mask and relax.

I'm resting my nails too. No polish during weekends! Do you see the yellowing on my nail? That's the downside of nail polishes :(

Now let's move on to my 20 Pan Project Update.
You should try this, ladies! It's not hard as Makeup Pan projects. It's easy and good for your beauty.
I have many lotions and creams laying here and there and still used to buy more. What's worse is that I wasn't using them on regular basis. Sometimes I was too lazy to put a body lotion before bed.
This project is encouraging and pushing me to use the products I have and it ultimately benefits me.

Product #7

Victoria's Secret Body Butter in Love Spell
My all time favorite scent
Great to use after bath or shower when your skin is warm and moist. The butter just melts and sinks in. Most of the time you can buy on sales like 5for $30 or 7for $35

Product #8
VS Body Scrub in Love Spell
It's a sugar scrub and lathers up very well. I love it for its scent.

Product #9
VS Beauty Rush in Honey Do
Body Drink Lotion
Love the Honey Dew scent. So sweet and realistic. I like to use it before sleep as my bedtime snack. Very light and moisturizing lotion.

Product #10 Shiseido White Lucent Whitening Eye Treatment
$50
I bought it in hopes for reducing my dark sun spots around my eyes cause the claim:
Specially developed with Shiseido's own Spot Deacti Complex, this lightweight cream addresses both melanin formation and poor local microcirculation, two major causes of dark circles. The Dark Circle Targeting Complex reduces melanin and diminishes the appearance of melanin pigments.
BUT unfortunately it didn't do anything for me. I haven't noticed the slightest change. This is the only product from Shiseido that let me down.

Product#11
De-luxe Foaming Body Scrub
in Rosemary Mint
Nice minty scent, good foaming, Apricot seeds really work hard on rough spots
Cheap $6 for 500 ml

Product# 12
Neutrogena Fresh Cooling Body Mist SPF 70
Nice cooling feel as you apply. I love it except for its strong scent. Kind of masculine scent so strong that competes with my perfume and actually wins over and everybody near me would think that I have a bad taste in fragrance, hahaha

Thank you beauties for reading!
Stay beautiful!
xoxo

Hi, Beauties!
How you've been?
Long time no post, I know! Last few days were hectic! Some of you might know that I'm trying to buy a home and it's nothing close to a piece of cake, I tell you.
I thought, since the market is slow it would be much easier but every home I liked had multiple offers and they're getting sold for more than their listing price. My realtor says that its typical during summer.
So, finally I've received a counter offer to my offer and I had to negotiate and sent counter counter offer which has been accepted today. That's why I'm feeling a little more relaxed and checking your blogs out ladies! :)
My realtor said that the hardest part is yet to come when we open escrow on Monday. :(
Now, on to the beauty related stuff.
A while ago I read a How to post on Katrina Is The Princess blog on how to repair your broken powder makeup and decided to mend my most favorite MAC blush in Joyous (LE)

My poor blush... I broke it while depotting it...:(

Now thanks to gorgeous Katrina I was able to make it all better!

She said Rubbing Alcohol is OK and you'll need a spoon... that's all..
So, I've added 1/2 tablespoon of alcohol on my blush...
It turns to a paste which you can shape however you want...

Hi Beauties,

If you haven't been to Korean SPA and haven't tried their Full Body Scrub you should definitely try it. But it's not for ladies who are body shy because you have to be butt naked.
Let me take you through it:
It costs around $50
They'll give you wrist band with the number and key to the locker. You leave all the earthy stuff in there and enter to shower area to clean yourself. You'll find shampoo, conditioner and soap next to every shower.
Then you can use the steam rooms, sauna or dip yourself in hot tea tub till your number is yelled in Korean and English by a lady in black bra and granny.
She'll take you to side area with plastic covered tables. You get on it and let her do the job. I have to say it's totally different from other relaxing and pampering atmosphere spas. It's done raw. You just have to go with it. The result is amazing!
So the lady in black granny will start scrubbing you from your earlobes to your toes without leaving an inch. You won't believe what will come out of you! Big gray balls of dead skin will surround you. You'll be happy knowing that you got rid of them.
She'll rinse you, soap you and give you massage on your back and legs. It kind of hurts but we need it.
Then she'll sit you up and put face cleanser on your palms so you wash your face. After that she'll ask you to go to shower to rinse yourself clean. That time you'll feel your hands sliding off of your skin because it's super smooth.
When you come back to the table she'll cover your body with what I believe honey milk and put freshly made cucumber mask on your face. Then she'll wash your hair and give a head massage at the same time.
After that she'll rinse off everything and apply lotion on your body and you good to go but nowhere near the water.
Wow, feeling good as new you can go and sleep on heated floor room or watch TV or go through magazines while drinking coffee and having some fruit snacks they have in there.
The whole scrubbing thing takes around 1,5-2 hours and of course you can sleep as long as you want after that.
I'm hooked and try to go once a month for this scrub. The ladies work so hard and I think it should be more expensive but you leave them good tip with provided envelope and it's all good!
So ladies if you have Korean community nearby you'll find Korean SPA for sure and the procedure is very much standard. I've been to 3 different ones and it all was pretty much the same.

Between my scrubs I try to maintain my body skin without dead ones with this sponge.

Buf-Puf Body Sponge
Around $6
developed by 3M

I use it everyday and don't feel clean unless I use it. It works with any shower gel and foams them good. White side is for whole body and the blue side is for rough spots. You can buy online drugstore.com or at Walmart and Target I hope.
If you won't squeeze it it'll last you a long time. I just flick it to get rid of water after use.

Lastly, NOFD: Zoya in Barbie. Very pretty pink!

Zoya in Barbie
Zoya.com

Thank you beauties for reading!
Stay Bautiful!
xoxo

Hi Beauties,
I've received a request to do Black and Teal Nail design long ago and finally came up with something! Hope you'll like it! :)

My hand looks odd...but I was just playing with my pearl pendant:)